If your color range is fairly narrow, I don't think it makes that big a deal about them matching the pinwheels, it helps to reinforce the circular aspects of the design if they do. But so does using just one fabric for the Parakeet/Green.

I was going to take other things but I'm going to try and pin up some of block units at my small group today. I still only want to sew two sets at a time, but I think I can at least get the subunits ready for the rest of the blocks and keep them clipped together. I really expected to spend yesterday sewing and not thrift shopping and goofing off with the hubby. So although I've been slacking the last few days, I'm feeling the pressure of wanting to get this Frolic done and move on to other things.

I think I will be completing it exactly as Bonnie designed it with the sawtooth border. Don't know when it will be quilted, depends on if someone really likes it and wants it, otherwise it was always meant for donation. I had found a great piece of fabric for the binding but wanted to see what the reveal was, I think it will be excellent -- but I need to dye test it first! I think it is a commercially prepared piece but not sure, a rather nice stripped effect batiky thing in nice colors. I like using stripes in bias binding, it adds movement that I appreciate.

I am loving everybody's finished blocks!

Didn't make as much progress this weekend as I wanted to, my oldest cat is ill and I have been babying her instead of sewing. I did finish clue 8 this morning, going to cut my neutral squares this afternoon and hopefully start piecing blocks.

If I can get through all of my planned projects this year, I am going to make a second frolic quilt in red white and blue for my father for christmas. I really like the pattern, and I think with the right fabric choices it will make a nice masculine quilt for his bed. For him I would do more solids to play up the contrast, or tone on tone prints to keep it a little quieter. I personally love the busy of a controlled scrappy quilt, but it wouldn't be to his taste.

It will also give me a chance to experiment with different ways of making the pieces than the ones I chose this time around! I have all of the clues saved on my computer, but I might actually buy the pattern to see if she presents it differently in the paid version.

SusieQ- this is exactly what I did, also! I don't know how because I read and re-read, I thought. This is just the first mistake I found. I bet there are more. Yesterday I used the squares I had. Today I made new ones. I only made one third of the blocks. First mystery I've tried so didn't want to start so big. Even though it was fun anticipating the new clues and keeping up with everyone's posts, the actual process may not be for me. We will see.

You guys are making me blush with all the compliments!!! If you like my color combo then you would like my house... I pulled the paint chips for all the colors we used painting our house. It is our first home and will be our forever home. It's lots of grays and purples and aquas. I figured it would match the house so it wouldn't matter if I didn't like the pattern completely. I think I'm gonna like this quilt. Just to get all the blocks made.... that's the hard part! There's no messing around with these!

Wow! Such beautiful blocks. My son is still visiting from NY, so no quilting happening at my house this week. More time for me to see pictures of your fabulous results and become re-energized and excited about finishing.

So I have nine done and that will be it for 10 days or so. Long days at work this week and next, and traveling this weekend. I too am thinking of not putting the blocks on point. I guess I have plenty of time to make a decision about it.

Wow! I sat this mystery out but I have really enjoyed the pictures. I look forward to seeing a finished quilt or top.

Wildyard: I love the border on your orphan block. I need to remember it for some of the bigger blocks.

Thank you for the kind comments on my block. I've got 4 done and 3 more half done. I'm doing block by block to keep everything straight, and finding my Lori Holt design boards really helpful. (My Christmas present to myself, but for years made the ones that she provides a tutorial for.)

I love seeing the variety of fabrics used, and some of the changes in layout! I've been doing Bonnie's mysteries since 2009, and this is the 3rd time I've followed her colors. Carolina Christmas was my first and I love(d) it. I like the colors of this one a lot, so decided to use them. It's a little on the pink side, I didn't have the darker color Framboise in my stash and was determined that this would be stash only, except for the back.

On my UFO goal list for this year are several almost finished mysteries from before my retirement. One of them, Grand Illusion, I really struggle with. I used the suggested colors and just do not love it. I can't decide if i'm going to finish it as suggested, give it away for somebody else to finish (did I mention that the blocks are almost all done, as is the sashing?) or figure out some other layout.

Things to think about while plodding away on Frolic. No more UFO's!!

Well I'm not alone!!!
I still don't know how it happened but I'm not going to stress over it.
Today I finished doing the HST's correctly- glad I had the fabric to do so.
Mine all came from my stash as some of the others said. I think I'm going to like it but
let me just say right now I'm a little dizzy looking at all those fabrics! I have tons left over,
triangles, hst's, who knows what else lol

I don't mean to complain, I think Bonnie is very generous with her time and talent. I just don't like this quilt, it is too busy for my taste. I like the blocks that many of you have posted, I guess it's just the layout. I am going to use the components to make other quilts. This was my first mystery quilt, I was able to keep up and it was fun to see everyone's progress. I just can't see taking the time to finish a quilt that I am not happy with. Good luck to all of you with your quilts.

Colorado, I totally understand and commend you that you were able to keep up on this and figure out her clues with this quilt, especially since this was your first time doing a BHMQ. Absolutely, if you dont love it dont do it. Thankfully, there are other quilts these units can go into and you can make something you will love. This is my 5th year for doing her mystery quilt and has been the most confusing to me, but I do love it and will do it a little at a time. Maybe the reason her instructions were not so scrappy this time is because it is such a busy quilt. I am not really loving the FG borders on it, not sure what I will do. I think next year I will wait to do the clues to be sure I really like it.

Colorado- you're not complaining. It is a busy quilt !
Whatever you end up doing with your blocks/units will work out fine I'm sure.
I'm going to lay mine out and make it into something I like.
That's the name of the game afterall.
I agree that Bonnie is very generous in her Mystery quilts and I'm sure she'd want you to make
something that works for you.

This was also my first one and I felt that it was confusing too, but I had nothing to compare it to.

Sometimes we get all we want out of a project before it is completed, we can never get back time.

I'm still plugging away at my subunits, and although yes, I've had some problems with the reds that turned into yellow/my neutral I was worried about, those are really minor compared to the light yellows and the Parakeet/light green which was always light for me. I am definitely going to have to cut the sashing rectangles from the darker/brighter tones. I'll be doing all the subunits before I start putting the blocks together.

Yesterday at group I pinned until I ran out of pins, just a few more sets. I did have to sort through the neutrals a bit to make sure they contrasted at least a little with those Parakeets. I'm up early, hubby just left for work and I'm about to start sewing!

Design-wise, mostly I make my own quilts and I have a different style in both design and construction. It is actually very rare that I follow someone else's pattern and although I have finished UFOs, I've never bought a kit even. So part of the point of this for me was that I was doing something different. I've learned a lot about working with my fabric. I'm working with units of scale quite a bit smaller than I usually do, I rarely cut anything smaller than 2.5". I am prepared that someone may just absolutely gush over this top because it isn't what I usually do, and if that happens I will gladly quilt it down for them.

I still can't visualize how my blocks are going to look next to each other -- one step at a time and I will post pictures when I have actual blocks.

Irish, your blocks are just fantastic!

SandraP, I say every year that I will wait until the reveal to decide if I will make the quilt, LOL. It's just too much fun to be part of the hubbub!

I'm not saying how long it took me to make a quarter block yesterday, LOL.

My new iron lasted just four days, but it was a $4.00 iron i found on clearance at work. I have ordered one with a retractable cord that will be here tomorrow. Without an iron, I am stalled on progress. Yesterday I cut all of the extra pieces from the reveal except the inner border. Today I have been working on sewing together the rows in the four patch corners, and the flying geese.

I am a little burnt out, so I am going to take the next few days off. I pushed through steps to get them done on time and it has lost the fun factor at the moment. I always get a little discouraged at this stage, but this is why I like making blocks one at a time. It's not the most efficient way of piecing a quilt, but I get so bored with all of the chain piecing of units.

Lovely blocks, everyone. Irish - it looks like you are our overachiever - 9 blocks? Wow! I'm taking a break to get the Cuts and Bolts NYE quilt done. I have all the sub-units sewn, but need to assemble the rest of the blocks and then put the top together.
As to those who think this quilt is very busy, I agree. With several of Bonnie's mysteries I've ended up just sashing the blocks with solid rather than the pieced way. Not sure what I will do with this one.

Colorado, have you tried setting some straight rather than on point?

There is a picture on FB that was done smaller (16 squares, so 4 x 4) with a straight set and that strobing motion that I see in the on-point setting does not appear. Someone else left out the sashing strips, and even that made a significant difference.

I managed to get one block sewn and I probably won’t even start another till next week, and if I don’t get it done till summer I’m good! This is the first time I have done one of her mysteries and I will probably do another despite some of the issues encountered. I appreciate the time and effort she puts into presenting us with these wonderful quilts and the effort it takes to put it all together for the general public, who’s skills are as wide and varied as the universe is endless. I have printed out and laminated each clue and made notes on each one for future reference should I decide to make the quilt again, thankfully my dates with Jack were minimal! I love the colors and the all out quiltyness of the pattern, and will actually start On Ringo Lake in the next month.

Colorado, my first BH MQ was Grand Illusion and Frolic looks tame after GI. I did not like GI - it was waayy too busy for me. But I finished it and a friend loved it. Since then, I've controlled my palette of fabrics for each one and it has made all the difference. And I've learned a lot from each MQ. You could sash with just a solid fabric and make it less busy. Someone will love Frolic and you can gift it to them and know that scrappy may not be for you for MQ 2020.

IrishNY and Tallchick, love the block(s) you have pieced and your fabric choices. I can’t wait to see more photos as you continue to build blocks.

Bonnie is generous and does put a lot of time and dedication into her mysteries...I usually only participate every “other” year as they do get to be quite time consuming.

Tallchick and IrishNY, your blocks are gorgeous! I'm so impressed with how everyone is making this quilt their own. The different color schemes make it so much fun. I love it when I see something I never would have thought of.
I have one (!) block done. It seemed to take me a long time just to assemble the corner block units. Like origamigoldfish, I make one block at a time, and I press the seams and then use a clapper to flatten them so they turn out close to the correct size. Hopefully, I will be able to speed up my output with more repetition.

Leslie

I didn't assemble any blocks but I have used some of the components already. I sewed the narrow rectangles together end to end and made a narrow boarder for another project. I also sewed the flying geese together end to end for a boarder and that worked out great. I really like how Bonnie had us press the FG, I had never done that before, it made the pieces easy to sew together and really reduced the bulk in the point. Even though I won't make Bonnie's quilt, the pieces won't go to waste.

I have almost always found her quilts to be busy. I tame them by using one fabric per color. This one I started scrappy and quickly lost interest. I may give it another go with beachy colors.

Five more sets then all my block sub-units will be done! That doesn't include the setting triangles and the blocks are not complete yet, just sewn and trimmed.

It's always funny to me the way we all work/are wired differently. One of the things I really don't like about this project is having to do it block by block, but others of you prefer to work that way and to do my form of assembly line piecing would drive you crazy! As my friends say, it was a short trip for me...

I like my blocks just fine for the most part -- but I really like the pictures some of you are posting! But as I remind myself, this was never a "me" project and I don't have to be excited for me. I mentioned it before, but I'm prepared to have close friends/family members rave about it because it isn't my style.

We have a new member asking about the seams and different ways to make flying geese over in this thread:
https://www.quiltingboard.com/introd...ml#post8354027
Since I pretty much always do mine as basically a variation of traditional piecing using oversized triangles, or the rectangle/two squares method, I have no real background in the other techniques.

tallchick and audsgirl, your blocks are wonderful!

Yesterday I finished my four quarter block corners and am nearly done with my first half block side triangle. Now that I'm used to it, I'm thinking I should be able to work on them all at once (component by component) or at least four at a time.

Iceblossom, I also much prefer chain piecing components to working on one block at a time.

Great job, Joe's mom! I admire anyone who can work on these in assembly line fashion and still maintain order. I would mess things up royally if I did that. For me, working on a segment and then getting up to go to the ironing board and the cutting table keeps everything fresh. My eyes have a tendency to glaze over when I continually do the same task. And then my accuracy falters. I have trouble with precision as it is!

Leslie

Here's my first completed block. I don't think it will be my favorite though.
I don't like the aqua I chose.

Can't get picture to upload.

Anyone know how to upload from and Iphone to a Mac?
I tried every size and none would upload :(

Worked with my Ipad

I found that I had to switch to the full site on my iPhone to be able to upload a picture but that doesn't always work. On my Mac I have to resize the picture to really small and then upload it. It's definitely a learning curve.

Susie, I use this site to reduce my old school digital camera since I don't have a smart phone option:
https://www.reduceimages.com/
I have no connection to the site, only that it doesn't set off my virus scanners and such, it is limited but perfect to post pictures here!

I have my windows sized so that when I reduce my main screen for here, it is half sized and down a bit. My file explorer is set to be above it. I position the resize window so I can see it well, and then click and drag from my camera card to the correct spot. Then after I resize the picture (in the old board format I also used to reduce the size of the picture in addition to the file size but don't bother with that now as thumbnails), I download it from there.

Then when I am ready to add the photo here, once I get to manage attachments I go to the downloads folder. Be aware that with the board redesign you need to stretch that window out, it defaults to the old vertical layout but is a horizontal layout -- you need that button on the far right of the screen! Took me a surprisingly long time to find out that was my initial error.

Edit: I love the contrast you have going on, grats on getting your picture posted!

Quilting Lawyer and Iceblossom- Thanks!!

My first block. I’m using yardage and colors from my stash.

QuiltsRfun ~ I love your color combination. It will be a very striking quilt and some of my favorite colors.

Thanks, Carol. I’m doing it straight set rather than on point and only half size.

My second new iron arrived today, so I had to try it out, right?

Despite being a member here for years, I'm still very much a beginner. The most complicated thing I have made to date has been a lap-sized friendship star, and I made it by hand, from strips I'd badly cut from my mother's stash as a teenager (so very many years ago). This whole thing has been a major learning experience for me...each block has more than 60 pieces of fabric in it!

I was very intimidated by putting these blocks together once I tried to start lining up and nesting seams. My machine hates excess bulk and tends to warp my seams in any place where more than four pieces of fabric meet. Putting these together has been a challenge, and I'm still experimenting with the best way to press my seams to keep the machine happy and give me decent results. In other words, each block takes me way longer than I expected to get right.

But here, have a first block, in all its busy glory!

Origamigoldfish I think I have that same aqua in some of my blocks! Good taste ;-)

QuiltsRfun, yours makes me think of pumpkin pie! I love that burnt orange with the blue!

SusieQOH I'm glad you got your picture to upload, it's beautiful!

Ok, you can't sneak that by me -- love the origami fabric, Origamigoldfish!